Overview

Bullwinkle Tower is one of the squat towers in the Garden of Eden area of Arches National Park, UT. With two short routes, it is a fun climb to do if there are parties on the nearby (and much more popular) Owl Rock. It's a very short 10 minute hike from the road so is a great tower to climb if you have only a few hours to spare.

La Sal Mountains at Sunset

Getting There

Arches National Park is just a few miles North of Moab on US 191. From Moab, drive north on 191 a few miles, passing the Junction with Highway 128 (River Road). Turn right (north) onto the main Arches National Park road and pass the enterance station and visitor center. The road climbs steeply out of the Moab Valley and after about eight miles from Highway 191, you will reach the turnoff to the Windows Area. Turn right here (which is right after Balanced Rock) and continue one mile down the Windows Road and turn left onto a marked turn-off which ends in a small parking area overlooking Elephant Butte. From the parking area, Bullwinkle is several hundred yards to the southeast (although not quite fully visible). Owl Rock is easily seen about 25 yards to the east. Get to Bullwinkle Tower bu hiking around the south side of Owl Rock, crossing a small drainage and ascending the slickrock slopes to the base of the next closest tower immediately southeast of Owl Rock.

Bullwinkle Tower (left center) from the road

Approaching Bullwinkle Tower

Route Options

There are two established routes on Bullwinkle Tower. Both are good, single pitch ascents roughly 60 feet long.

The west chimney is the standard route on the tower and is the obvious crack splitting the west side. This is a fantastic way to spend a winter afternoon when you need the direct sunlight to climb comfortably. The beginning of the climb starts on some low angle slabs which are can easily be scrambled up to reach the small saddle between the tower and a small knob just to the west. The first move is a short, 4-5 foot headwall which can be hard enough to require a shoulder stand if you are shorter. If you're real tall such as myself, it was nothing more than a 4th class move. Once at the base of the chimney, work the final 40 feet through it. There are good knobby holds and a couple chockstones than can be used for holds or protection. Halfway up there is a nice ledge with the final 20 feet requiring you to climb deep into the chimney and pull around and over the big chockstone guarding the summit.

Gear: Take one set of cams from 0.75" - 3" there is no real good places for anything smaller. TCU's work well too.

This route is a harder chimney on the opposite side of the tower. It is reported that Randall Weekley and Jonathan Auerbach had the first ascent while thinking they were attempting the second ascent of the west chimney! The climb begins about 10 feet off the true deck, and opens with a very committing move which can lead to serious injury in the event of a fall. Some people have given this climb a "R" rating. Use the same anchor at the summit per the west chimney route.

Gear: Bring one set of cams from 0.5" - 4" and perhaps some TCU's. Also bring long slings.

Garden of Eden parking area from summit

Descent - Descend the tower by making a single rope rappel off the convoluted anchor at the top of the west chimney. A bunch of slings are wrapped around a big rock and backed up by a couple old bolts. It's a good anchor but sometimes the slings get very old and should be replaced.

Poor bolts at the summit

Camping/Red Tape

Car camping is allowed in designated campsites only within Arches National Park ($10 per night). Backcountry permits are also available which can be obtained at the visitors center. Camping in Arches (and Moab itself) can fill up very quickly, especially on the weekends. Free camping in the area can be found on BLM lands in Castle Valley, Kane Creek, in Tusher Canyon located north of Moab about 10-15 miles, and a few other places.

Climbing in Arches National Park is only allowed if you use clean climbing techniques. Bolts and hammers are no longer allowed and cannot be brought into the park. Hand chalk must not be white but can be used as long as it nearly matches the color of the rock. Using rappel slings is fine however it is advised you remove and replace old slings. The anchor at the summit of Bullwinkle Tower was getting pretty messy with old slings one of which I removed. There are also a couple old pitons at the summit that looked safe.

Arches is a National Park, so National Park entrance fees (Currently $10/vehicle for seven days) and other regulations apply. Dogs are allowed only on leashes and only on pavement.

Summit of Bullwinkle Tower

Bullwinkle Tower Summit View

External Links

Check out Eric Bjornstad's guidebook; Desert Rock: Rock Climbs in the National Parks. This book has a good description for Bullwinkle Tower and can be found, along with other books in any of the gear shops and bookstores in Moab.